The Third Divide

Chapter Nine

For My Mum. Sorry about the wait.

Survivors, actual survivors of this mess, I wouldn't have believed it if I weren't now in the very cramped living room of Mr and Mrs Grant surrounded by people who I barely even know reciting stories of all their separate ordeals that lead them to this house. One man, I think his name was Greg, had made it here all the way from the town of Yates, which was at least triple the distance we had to walk. He said most the town was wiped out in the first night, he'd lost track of his family in the chaos as everyone had ran in different directions he thought he'd head to Glissro, being the biggest city on the planet he thought it'd be still safe. How wrong he was, how wrong we all were.

Another Survivor was just a little girl, only a year older than Poppy, Lost her parents at during the first attack and had to run fight and sneak her way out of Glissro High town all the way to Glissro Low town where the Grants found her, weak and bloodied and took her in. She stood in front of me now, in a blood stained dress, glassed over eyes and all innocence lost from her fragile form. I think we've all lost our innocence in this. We weren't Innocent in the fact we played with dolls and believed in the tooth fairy but we believed in other falsities. We believed we were safe, like nothing could touch us here in the outskirts of the galaxy. We all lost our innocence in these past few days.

All in all there were Twenty Seven survivors spread out in the three houses still intact in this area but even then it was a tight squeeze getting fitting our extra Nineteen survivors.

Later I went out on the balcony of the Grants house, it was quiet out here, almost peaceful if it weren't for the distant fires and silhouettes of crumbling buildings. I then tried to recap the last few days in my head. From the arrest, to the dream, then the false arrest, The attack of the creatures, then the battle for the Barracks, the death of dad which stung to think about and couldn't bring myself to consider just yet. There'd be time to mourn when this mess was over, not now. Then was the painful walk to Glissro and the discovery of the destroyed city and then the finding of the survivors. It was a lot to take in and it was hard to think that it had only taken a few days to happen, and just a few hours to turn my entire life upside down.

I got snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of the door opening behind me, i spun to find Nick coming onto the balcony.

"Hey there Dean, didn't mean to startle you." Said Nick apologetically.

"Its okay, just thinking about all that's happened recently, its hard to believe even though I experienced it first hand."

"Yeah I know how you feel." Nick said as he got a chair and sat down next to me. "I cant believe that just a few days ago we were just kids messing around in the market place."

"Its all just so hard to take in."

we then sat in silence for a long while, seemingly taking in our surroundings and our situation. We just sat. Then Nick turned to me and asked me a question that i hadn't wanted to think about until now, but i must've been thinking about it because it didn't shock me as much as it should have.

"Hey Dean. Can I ask you something?" Nick asked almost reluctantly.

"What is it Nick." I encouraged

"Do you think we'll make it out of this alive? Do you think there's even a way left off this rock?"

I hesitated. There was so many questions that needed answers. Was there even space worthy ship ship with a hyperdrive core still left here? The odds that they weren't all used or destroyed in the first day were a million to one. And even if there was, getting everyone to the star dock and finding a ship big enough for us all, it would be no easy task. Then, even if all those things fell in place, even if everyone got to a space worthy ship, big enough for everyone, and got it into orbit, there was the matter of getting out of orbit and the system without the massive creature battleships blowing us out of the sky.